


Outside of the Ring

by DaniJayNel



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: AU, F/F, Oneshot, mikannie - Freeform, prompt, underground fighting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-01
Updated: 2016-02-01
Packaged: 2018-05-17 13:05:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,248
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5870764
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DaniJayNel/pseuds/DaniJayNel
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Mikasa meets her: during the night as an opponent, during the day as a quiet stranger. She's interested in getting to know Annie the fighter, and Annie the librarian.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Outside of the Ring

_Her_ overall presence wasn’t anything Mikasa particularly picked up immediately. She was simply browsing through a few book titles, fingers lightly skimming over the clean paperbacks. When she happened to cast a glance upwards, she noticed the play of muscles, the conscious movement and the fluid, sure way that she carried herself.

Mikasa paused, her hand resting upon a book she had been about to select and read. She squinted lightly, not so sure if her eyes were deceiving her, but then exhaled when she realized they were not. At the receptionist desk, a blonde woman worked quietly at checking a stack of books out. She had modest clothing on, but whenever her arm swept to the side, Mikasa’s eyes immediately took note of the way the fabric pulled tight, straining over well-developed biceps and shoulders.

At first Mikasa simply shook her head and pulled the book out. She took a nearby seat, flipped the book to read the synopsis on the back, and eventually opened at the beginning. It read, ‘ _Introduction to All Things Martial Arts’._

Too distracted, though, Mikasa set the book aside and crossed one leg over the other. She let her eyes travel the length of the room, gazing at shelves upon shelves of books, new and old alike. But try as she might, she couldn’t keep herself from gazing back at that blonde woman, admiring the way she moved. Memories plagued her of the previous night, of when Mikasa had first met her.

XxX

_“Guys,” Armin prompted nervously. “Are you sure about this? This looks illegal.”_

_Eren scoffed. “So what, Armin? Live a little!”_

_“It technically is, though,” Mikasa pointed out lightly. She shrugged when Eren glared at her, but pulled Armin close as she grinned. “No one will catch us, relax. I wanted to see what this whole underground fight club was like.”_

_“You mean you wanted to show off,” Armin corrected, rolling his eyes. He seemed to welcome the embrace, but shrugged out of it when a group of raggedly dressed men slinked by, eyeing the three of them like predators. “I don’t like it here, Mikasa.”_

_Mikasa shared the sentiment. So far she wasn’t so impressed. They were down town near the poorer areas, collected inside of an abandoned mall complex. The building had been abandoned after the investors had miscalculated and run out of funds, forced to take what they had left and put it somewhere else. Despite its abandoned status, the area was littered with vehicles and people of all kinds. Many were simply there to watch, Mikasa knew. She had heard that someone had started organizing fights, putting bets on the fighters. So she had done a little digging, heard the name ‘Annie’ thrown around here and there, and eventually found herself an invitation. Armin didn’t need to know that part, yet, exactly._

_“No, we’re good,” Mikasa assured him. She gave his hip a pat, and then allowed the crowd to swallow her up and separate her from both Armin and Eren. Luckily, Eren seemed too caught up in the testosterone in the air to really notice, and Armin had enough faith in her level headed nature to truly worry—he might soon, in any case._

_She walked curiously around the parking lot, broken glass and rubber crunching underneath her shoes. A few cars down she could hear a couple in the throes of loud coitus, and even further down someone had started a small disco party. Around the corner of the next building stood a large group of women all in various stages of ‘butch’. Mikasa nodded curtly as she passed by them, but didn’t miss the few lewd looks she got in response. They were smart enough not to antagonize her, though the men didn’t seem as intelligent. A few whistled her way, and one man even paused in his steps to grab Mikasa’s shoulder, bringing her to a stop just outside what seemed to be the main entrance._

_“Hey there babe, what’cha doin’ in a place like this?”_

_Mikasa sighed in annoyance and tried to shrug his grip off, but he tightened his fingers into the fabric of her leather jacket and leaned in close. His breath stank of beer and he was unnaturally warm. It was gross._

_“I’m here to fight,” she told him simply. She wondered what to do with him, now that he had really presented himself as a problem, but paused when a group formed around them. More seedy men, some even seedier women, gave them curious and amused glances. Someone had already started asking for bets._

_“Lost your boyfriend?” he asked mockingly. “He know you here?”_

_“Ugh.” Mikasa let her shoulders drop, exhaled shortly and let her every muscle relax. The man knew he had a show going and thought he would entertain everyone a little more. But the grin forming on his lips turned into a bloody ‘O’ of surprise when Mikasa’s knee shot upwards into his groin and her palm slammed into his nose as he fell forward. His body twisted to the side from the force of both powerful blows, and then Mikasa yanked his arm and tossed him effortlessly over her shoulder and onto the hard, dirty tar. His body thudded hard, he coughed some blood, twitched once and went still._

_The gathering group dispersed very quickly, some eyeing her with appreciation, some with an excitement that made Mikasa regret showing off—as Armin had accused. Someone was also hurrying off, counting a stack of money bills._

_“That was impressive,” a man spoke up by the doorway. He pushed away from the wall and stalked over. His muscles were so large and meaty that Mikasa felt an instant urge to turn into a vegetarian. His meaty breasts bounced with each step, but he seemed more proud of his ballooned muscles than anything, and extended a hand. “Name’s Reiner. You here to fight?”_

_Mikasa took his hand with another sigh. She didn’t wince when he intentionally gripped too hard, and felt great satisfaction when he twitched ever so slightly in pain, and pulled his hand away as discreetly as possible. “I heard rumours,” Mikasa admitted. “Thought I’d have a look.”_

_“That was an interesting move there,” he told her, pointing at the man still prone on the ground. “Collapsing your form to feign submission, make your opponent believe that he was the control, only to kick him in the balls.”_

_“He deserved it,” Mikasa shrugged. “Not my fault men are so easily tricked.”_

_Reiner clicked his tongue, but he was grinning. “Very true. Would you be interested in fighting tonight? We’ve got a big match coming. Last man standing gets to battle our champion.”_

_Mikasa lifted her brow as her only acknowledgement. “I’ll think on it, Reiner.”_

_Reiner’s smile went off balance. He lingered around for a second more, clearly unsure of what to do, and then simply returned to his earlier spot. “Just jump into the fight once someone is knocked out,” he told her over his shoulder. “We don’t have many rules besides no killing.”_

_Mikasa went by him, nodding. “Thanks,” she said._

_It was surprisingly cold within the building, and dark. Only when Mikasa stepped into the centre, where various lights were installed, did the darkness abate. Standing there on the side-lines, watching two men grapple at each other, was a strikingly attractive blonde woman. She didn’t flinch when the men collapsed close to her, almost enough to roll over her toes. Her blue eyes were hard and almost bored. When they looked up and caught sight of Mikasa, there was something in there that called out to her. Mikasa didn’t know how she knew this, but this woman was Annie._

_Later on, after kicking every ass that demanded it, Mikasa finally stood in the ring, faced with an interesting, beautiful opponent. Mikasa had never been so ready to fight in her life. And with that little grin, and those glaring blue eyes, Mikasa could tell that Annie felt the same._

XxX

Now she was left with a dilemma. Underground fighting was one thing. Would this stranger appreciate Mikasa approaching her? On one hand, Mikasa was definitely inclined to pick her book up, check it out and at least properly introduce herself. She and Annie—if that truly was her name—hadn’t uttered a word to each other during the fight. Mikasa had heard a few grunts of pain or exertion, but not nearly enough to know the sound of her voice. But on the other hand, this was bridging the two worlds. Mikasa didn’t mind it, but she couldn’t know if Annie would.

There was only one way to find out.

Mikasa took the book with her and headed over to the quiet librarian, still working steadily on that pile of books. She didn’t look up when Mikasa paused by the desk, so Mikasa cleared her throat and set the book down.

“Name,” she drawled, professionally disinterested.

Mikasa’s lips twitched. “Mikasa Ackerman. You’re Annie, right?”

That garnered the wanted response, and Annie’s eyes tore away from the computer screen to regard Mikasa in a new light. Gone was the air of annoyance and indifference. Annie’s blonde brow rose. “How do you know my name?” she was squinting, trying to figure out where she could place that face.

Mikasa wondered if she wasn’t a little too overdressed, so she removed her scarf and held her hair up, as if to tie it. Once the hair was out of her face, Annie’s eyes widened.

“It’s you,” she breathed, blinking.

“It’s me,” Mikasa repeated. “I didn’t take you as the bookworm type.”

Annie bristled immediately. “What are you doing here? How did you find me?”

Mikasa dropped her hair and rewound her scarf. “This is a public place,” she pointed out. “And it was coincidence. I just stopped by to get a book on martial arts when I noticed you.”

Annie rubbed at her temple, sighing. “Sorry.” It didn’t sound too sincere, but she looked greatly distressed. “I just… don’t normally mix worlds.”

“So you work here by day, kick ass by night?”

Sharp, blue eyes flashed upwards, slashing Mikasa right in the heart. “Don’t talk about that here.”

“What, no talk of the fight club?”

“Mikasa, right?”

“Yes.”

“Look,” Annie stated, standing. She opened her mouth to continue, then paused and faltered. Mikasa had leaned closer, elbows pressed to the desk. She tried to look calm and assertive, but an amused little smirk was twitching at her lips.

“You were incredible last night,” Mikasa told her playfully. A young freckled girl walking by paused, dropped a book. Annie noticed and Mikasa pretended not to.

“M-Mikasa!” A very slight, very tame blush dusted Annie’s cheeks, and she seemed to try very hard to hide it.

“I mean, the way your body moved. You’re small, but you’re flexible. And when you pinned me down.” She was enjoying this way, way too much. “You had me out of breath and grunting in no time.”

The poor teenager scrambled off, tripping on her own feet and stumbling into a tiny blonde nearby. Mikasa watched them fumbled in embarrassment, and then she felt the hairs at the back of her neck stand up and turned to see Annie glaring so fiercely that she checked to make sure there was no sharp weapon nearby.

“I don’t know you,” Annie spoke slowly, carefully. “And I would appreciate it if you didn’t come in to my place of work, and make crude jokes like that. Yes, I do fight when it suits me, but that doesn’t enter this world.”

Mikasa straightened, nodding. “Understood, I apologize. Could I get the book then, please?”

Annie stepped closer to the computer and typed rapid-fire on the keyboard. She then scanned the book, clicked a couple more times and deposited the book back on the counter. “There,” she said. “You’re free, Miss Ackerman.”

Mikasa dipped her head the slightest in thanks and tucked the book underneath her arm. Later, she would curl up on her sofa and do some reading. For now, she had other plans.

“Is Annie your real name?”

Apparently Annie had expected her to leave immediately, because she huffed in annoyance and glared at Mikasa with surprise. “Yes, it is.”

Mikasa smiled. “It’s really pretty. And you, you’re pretty too.”

Annie’s hard expression cracked slightly, caught off guard. “Um, thanks…?” It sounded more like a question.

“I really meant it, though. That fight last night was amazing. I don’t usually go out to seedy places like that to meet my match. Is there any way that won’t be our last fight?”

Annie blinked. “Are you asking me out?”

Mikasa tapped a finger against the book, considering. “Depends, do you like coffee or the gym?”

Annie opened her mouth, closed it, opened it again and inhaled. “C-coffee…”

Mikasa smiled. “Here.” She pressed her card down on the counter, where her name, number and email were printed in bold across the front. “Give me a call when you need to spar, or if you’d like to grab a drink.” She winked, lifted the book in a wave. “I have some reading to get to. Enjoy the rest of the day.”

Mikasa turned and left, content with the knowledge that, although last night’s fight had ended in a draw, this small battle had been a victory. Besides, she really was attracted to Annie. It would be nice to get to know her outside of the ring.


End file.
